


i'm standing here naked

by elsanoelle



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Is a Good Bro, Canon Divergence - Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Dorks in Love, First Kiss, Getting Together, Implied Sexual Content, Light Angst, M/M, Romance, Steve Rogers Feels, Tony Stark Feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-30
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-30 13:41:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17225102
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elsanoelle/pseuds/elsanoelle
Summary: A warm but slightly angsty, post-Christmas fic of our favourite OTP finally getting together! Ok who am I kidding; this is just an excuse to write a Tony & Bucky fic lol





	i'm standing here naked

**Author's Note:**

> this happened, so civil war wouldn't.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

When the doorbell rang, Steve was just three steps away from the door.

Pantry supplies had mostly run out two days ago, but because it was Christmas and stores were extremely busy on boxing day, grocery shopping was put on hold for a bit. It was half an hour before closing time and Steve had been ready to go for a while now. If only a certain someone could get his act together and get a move on. 

"I'll get it. But hurry up in there," Steve says, throwing his voice as he gets the door without peeking to see who it was. For all he cares, this was a cause for further delay.

Opening the door, he definitely didn't expect to come face to face with Tony.

"Hi," Tony says shakily, with a half-smile framed by his neatly trimmed goatee. Judging from the specks of snowflakes peppering his perfectly coiffed hair, shoulders and parts of his cashmere pea coat, Tony had walked over here under the snow. The combination of his striking good looks and downlight shining from above made him look like an angel with a soft halo.

An angel, who was in love with him.

An angel, whose heart was broken because Steve's pride was in the way of admitting that he felt the same way.

An angel, who after years of chasing after a shadow, has recently asked for space. 

Tony's last words were still ringing in Steve's ears; twelve tubs of ice cream in a span of six days bears witness to its effect. But now the brunette was standing in the hallway of Bucky's not so secret apartment, halfway across the globe, two days after Christmas with...  _flowers?_ If anything, Steve was more than prepared to grovel for forgiveness.

This turn of events was, to say the least, confusing.

"Tony. Hi. What are you - When did you.... You're here." Steve was nervously tripping over his words but he manages to take a quick glance over his shoulder. His sentences were left unfinished, but from his body language, Tony could read him loud and clear. As if their relationship wasn't already a clusterfuck of unresolved issues, the situation they were finding themselves in was less than ideal.

"He's in there, isn't he?"

Steve nods in response. Before either of them could decide on what to say next, a voice breaks into the background. 

"A'right a'right a'right, you can quit bustin' my chops. Let's - where  _the fuck's_  my scarf?" 

Tony bites his lips to stop himself from reacting. He recognises the voice alright, but the frustration behind it? Oh that was something he was very accustomed to experiencing back in the Tower. Everyone on the team including Tony agrees that Steve was an unbearable clean freak. His mother henning was just as bad as his obsession with tidiness. So Tony could easily guess what was going on.

The sounds of cushions bouncing off the floor and newspaper being shoved around was followed by a groan.

"It was right here two seconds ago. Damn it Stevie, if you keep cleaning up this place every goddamn minute,  _I swear to God_ , I will ki-" He walks into Tony's view and stops talking the second he realises what was going on, "- _iiiick_  your ass back stateside."

With a pinched smile, Tony makes a micro hand wave. "Merry Christmas."

Bucky's mouth stays open. He glances at Steve and back at Tony. Suddenly the whirring of the gears in his metal arm became more pronounced, likely because everyone had stopped breathing for a second.

"Stark."

Cold, but not unexpected. 

He tries not to sigh, so he inhales the roses in the bouquet pressed to his chest. He didn't come for a fight, not with Steve and certainly not with Steve's best friend with whom he shared a love-hate relationship with. They've always been indifferent to each other, but right now Tony was at a disadvantage. By now Barnes would have gotten the whole low down of Steve and Tony's recent fallout, so Tony braces himself.  

"For the record, I'm not here to take you in," Tony explains without prompt.

Bucky cocks an eyebrow up, bemused. "Obviously," Bucky says, eyeing the flowers then at Steve who has suddenly taken a huge interest on the patterns on the floor. "Who's that for?"

Tony clears his throat. "Are you allergic to pollen?"

"No."

"Then they're not for you."

"I'm crushed," Bucky says flatly, his facial expression a scary cross between woeful and unimpressed.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Tony asks, hinting for some time alone with Steve. 

"I'm right where I'm supposed to be," Bucky replies cheekily, showing zero intention of leaving. "You, on the other hand, you seem a little lost, Stark. You're a good 3000 miles away from home, give or take."

"You know what, so are you," Tony's says, neutrally. "And this is a pretty shitty secret lair, by the way. I mean, dingy apartment at the wrong side of town? Cliched, even for a man who looks perpetually constipated, swinging a metal arm. Which, by the way, needs to be looked at. I can hear you scratch your ass seven floors down from the sidewalk.

Bucky crosses his arms; the whirring was jarringly louder these days and it did annoy the soldier from time to time. "Wasn't scratching."

"I meant it figuratively."

"Don't suppose you've got lube stashed somewhere in that fancy coat of yours," Bucky says with a straight face, rolling his shoulder and flexing his cybernetic limb.

A genuine laugh escapes Tony. Bucky presses his lips to contain his smile. 

"I walked right into that one, didn't I?" Tony concedes, a hand up in surrender.

"Last I checked I'm still a wanted man, Stark. Not everyone's as forgiving as you are," Bucky says stoically. 

Tony shrugs, flicking away a speck of snow from his forearm. "Well, Sergeant, there's nothing  _to_  forgive on my part. My parents have been dead for 20 over years, I've mourned them and I've moved on. Do I miss my mom? Yes. Did she deserve to go the way that she did? Fuck no. Do I want justice for that? You bet I do. That's what the Avengers are for - we take down HYDRA, we take down the bad guys to the very last one so this, this sort of thing never has to happen again."

Tony takes a deep breathe because he rarely ever addresses the tragedy without a neat glass in hand.

"And it wasn't you who did it. James Buchanan Barnes, as I've come to know, is a legitimate asshole, but he's not a killer. Heck, you can't even pick a proper secret hideout, so you'd make a horrible villain."

"I'll accept your backhanded compliment," Bucky says. Internally the former assassin was awash with relief, like the weight on his shoulders were lifted and he could breathe properly again. This was as good as a pardon he'll ever get from Tony Stark for the heinous crimes the Winter Soldier committed against his family. 

"Besides, I may have found a way to keep Mr. Hyde away for good."  _This_  catches Steve's attention and his head finally snaps up.

"You did?" His voice was a pitch higher, unable to contain his interest.

Tony takes his eyes away from Bucky and nods at Steve. "Still running some tests but it should work. Beta-phase in three weeks."

They look at each other with hopeful, dopey eyes that it makes Bucky feel like a lamp post. So he forces out the loudest throat clear in the history of mankind, startling the lovesick super heroes and drawing their attention back to him.

"You know what, I actually do have somewhere to be," Bucky says, finger-gunning the door. "Those potatoes aren't going to buy themselves. But don't wait up, Stevie."

Tony steps aside to let him through but Steve makes a quick dash to the storage behind the front door. 

"Buck, hang on, your scarf's in the closet," Steve calls out, already retreating to grab the knob. Tony was dying to make a joke about the Winter Soldier needing a scarf to keep warm, but decides that maybe it was too soon.

Bucky pauses just outside the door. "Just take it with you on your way outta there, pal."

And the bastard actually  _winks_  at Tony. 

Maybe there was hope at a friendship between them after all. 

Of course that remark completely flew over Steve's head, so as soon as Bucky was down the stairs and out of sight, Steve awkwardly invites the billionaire in. He offers to take Tony's coat but without pause, reaches for Tony's shoulders to peel it off. They really shouldn't be this domesticated around each other, but that was exactly what this visit was about.

They needed to talk.

About them.

About what it was really going on between them.

"Can I get you something to drink?" Steve offers as he folds Tony's coat over his forearm, tapping his hands against it to calm his building nerves and curiosity. 

"These are for you," Tony replies instead, finally handing him the flowers. Steve takes them, and they smell fresh and lovely even in the cold Norwegian winter. "Hope you like them."

"I love them. Thank you, Tony."

Tony leans against the armrest of the sofa and looks around while Steve neatly hangs his coat behind the door and goes to the kitchen to put the roses away. The apartment wasn't half as bad as Tony imagined when he walked up. The wallpaper wasn't hideous, the furniture old but not useless. The air was musty but then again the windows were shut due to the snow. The kitchen island was spotless. 

Eerily, this place looks similar to Steve's apartment back in Brooklyn. 

The neighbourhood though, was less than desirable. Tony was sure the group of men downstairs were planning on mugging him on his way out of the complex later. Good luck with that.

"So how was Christmas at Rhodey's?" Steve asks, breaking the silence. He sinks into the recliner opposite of Tony. It's Bucky's favourite chair in the entire apartment.

"It was good. Great. The usual. Too much eggnog. I hate eggnog." The answers came out mechanically, as intended. Tony didn't really stalk the super soldier across the globe to talk about how he spent Christmas  _away_  from him. 

"I missed you though," he blurts out, straight into Steve's marble blue eyes. He leaves it at that, unsure of whether he would be overstepping to say more considering that it was he who made the decision for them to take a break from each other.

"I .. me too, Tony. Thought about you a lot."

"Yeah?"

Steve nods, his cheeks bunching into a smile Tony truly, truly ached to see for the past three weeks. "I'm really happy you're here Tony. There was nothing tough or manly about the way I've been spending my time since we last spoke. Ask Bucky - I've been a mess. But I've also had the chance to really think about what you said."

"Steve, I'm sorry. The stuff I said - the last thing I want is for you to leave me the fuck alone. I don't want that. Avoiding you-"

Steve holds his hands up to stop Tony's rambling. 

"That's not the only thing you said, and believe me that's not the part that's stuck. I realise that I have been selfish. For the most part, I agree with you."

Tony's head jerks back comically. He blinks, surprised at the turn of events. 

"I'm sorry that I've made you feel like you were getting only half of me, Tony. Truth is, you were right. I  _was_  holding back. I always had one foot out the door, ready to take off at the first sight of trouble. I took advantage of the situation. And you're not wrong about me sending you mixed signals; I realise now that I was reeling you in when it was convenient and shutting you out when things got rough. You have given me so much of you yet I couldn't even give you a straight answer." 

He licks his lips and presses his hands against his mouth, like he was saying a prayer. His ocean blue eyes, with a hint of green, begins to well.

"You know, it was a kick to the face when you said that you were done trying. That maybe we're just not a good fit."

Like clockwork, a heavy tear drop escapes and streams down his cheek. Steve quickly wipes his eyes, sniffles through his nose. The sight just melts Tony into a puddle and he crawls over to Steve on his knees, taking his hands into his own as he kneels in front of the man.

"Steve.."

"We fit, Tony," Steve stresses, almost pleading as he looks into those bambi eyes and tightens his grip on Tony's hands as though the man in front of him was going to disappear if he didn't. 

The genius smiles sadly.

"Of course we do," he whispers, cupping Steve's jaw softly. "I said a lot of stupid things. That was one of the stupidest ones."

"I didn't realise how much you mean to me until you walked away. Watching you leave felt like a tank had hit me in the chest, and believe me Tony, the tank hurts a lot less. I thought I was brave, but losing you scares the life out of me. I've never, ever felt this way. Not with anyone but you."

At this point, Tony just kisses Steve softly on the lips.

He's waited forever to do this, for the right time and place, to seal the gap, the barriers between them. If only Steve would just be honest with himself, Tony would have kissed him ages ago. Now that Tony knows for sure that he wasn't imagining the attraction between the two hot-headed individuals, this finally feels right. 

And Steve?

Steve just melts against him, kissing back reverently like a man thirsting for life. He lifts Tony up onto his lap for better access to the man he's been craving for. The kisses were deep, languid and sweet, exactly how they both imagined it would be. When Tony pulls back for air, he couldn't help but gush at the way Steve chased him for more. He leans his forehead against Steve's.

"I'm sorry I made you feel that way," he coos. "Well, technically, sorry not sorry."

"I want to be with you, Tony. I want what you want," Steve breathes, burying himself against Tony's neck, sinking his teeth against the skin and suckling a bruise into it. 

Tony's knees were weakening at the intimacy. "Do you, Steve?" 

In a split second, they're eye to eye again. "I'm only asking because I don't want to force you into anything you're not entirely comfortable with. I want us to be on the same page. I'm happy to work on your pace. I want you to be happy," Tony emphasises on the last few words.

"I  _am_  happy with you."

Tony takes in a deep breath. "Are you happy with ...  _all_  of me?"

Steve looks at him softly, understanding perfectly what Tony was on about. "This about sex?"

Tony gulps. This was unchartered territory, and way to go Steve, nosediving right into the topic without a float.

Sure Tony's noticed the way Steve has looked at him,  _admired him_ , clothed and (half) naked. There was desire in those blue eyes, but the same can be taken as curiosity. The fact remains that Steve had only been attracted to women before Tony crashed landed into his life. So it was a fair question from Tony, one that didn't require an immediate knee-jerk response. 

"Maybe. Yes? I mean you know what - we don't have to talk about that now. Sorry. Massive amount of blood just travelled south because, damn.  _Your mout_ h, Steve."

Steve smiles as his hands peel away Tony's that were resting on his shoulders, linking around his neck. Without breaking eye contact, he places Tony's hands on his thighs, gently massaging them against the strong muscles as he spreads his legs wider and wider. This was an invitation and nothing else. 

"Steve," Tony says, impressed at the boldness. "You don't have to-"

"I want you," the super soldier hums as he sucks on a new spot along Tony's jawline. "I've thought about you, Tony, I've touched myself thinking about you. Hell, Bucky's sick of telling me to keep it down, the neighbours know, pretty sure the whole street knows how much I want you."

This makes Tony's pants really, really tight.

"So yes, I do want  _all_  of you." Steve guides Tony's right hand against his erection and Tony actually breaks the kiss to gasp. As though he actually needed the visual confirmation, Tony presses his forehead against Steve's collarbone to peek. Steve was hard as a rock, and  _huge_. 

"Take me," he whispers into Tony's ear.

 

 

+

 

 

Tony opens an eye and his vision blurs before he could recognise the ceiling, the walls around him. It was bright outside, way too bright so he covers his eyes with an arm and takes a  deep breath. He was so, so happy to fill his lungs with the glorious rush of freshly brewed coffee and the smell of burnt bacon.

He quietly hopes whoever's responsible for the aroma will be willing to share.

He presses the back of his hand against mouth to suppress a yawn. When he tries to move, there was a solid weight over him pressing his body down. Tony properly blinks awake and looks down his bare chest to see blond, mussed hair laying atop of him.

Steve was sprawled all over his mid-half, dead asleep.

Whilst the both of them were buck naked, thankfully they were covered in a large throw blanket. Tony wonders if this was Steve's doing. The blanket was definitely not there when they fell asleep on the couch last night. 

When he tries to pry his shoulder from leather of the couch to at least prop himself up, Tony feels sticky, sore all over. He wonders how Steve was going to react when he wakes up. Was he going to freak out? Will he regret the things he let Tony do to him? Would he want more? 

Too many questions, too early in the day.

And Tony desperately needs to pee. 

"There's a towel over there," a voice breaks into the stillness. Tony goes to the source of it and sees Bucky leaning against the island, reading the ingredient list from a box of cereal that covered his face. "I nearly broke my face tripping over your pants so I've thrown everything into the wash."

Bucky pauses. "Did you have anything in your pockets?

Tony remembers a Patek Phillipe pocket watch, his Starkphone, maybe couple of hundred Euros but he says nothing. He had bigger concerns. He needed to get 220lbs of muscle off of him because he was slowly losing the feel of his legs.

Also, he needs to pee. 

"He's pretty wiped out. Good luck," Bucky continues, taking in Tony's struggles with too much delight. Tony grunts as he carefully peels his limbs from under Steve. Thankfully the super soldier shuffles, giving Tony some space to wiggle out of his grip, and onto the floor. Steve didn't seem to realise that the warm body he was pressed against was now gone and he continues to sleep. 

Wrapping his waist with the towel, Tony heads to the toilet before he joins Bucky at the kitchen. The soldier hands him a mug of coffee with his metal hand. Tony couldn't help but marvel at the sight of the shiny steel, his brain already thinking of ways to take it apart, reassemble it, maybe weaponise it, put it back together. He was such a inventor he sees possibilities in everything.

"Thank you," Tony says, quickly taking a gulp of the piping hot beverage. He's always enjoyed the burn down his throat. Thinking of  _that_  briefly takes him back to last night, and a blush creeps in. Come to think of it, his throat could use a little down time after all that abuse.

"You two made up?" 

Tony looks up from the rim of the mug. He smiles back into the coffee without answering. 

"Congratulations I guess. Obviously, he's not the little kid from Brooklyn anymore and he doesn't need me to watch over him. That doesn't mean I'll stop doing it."

Tony puts down the mug. "Oh boy. Is this you giving me the shovel talk, Barnes?"

Bucky tosses a clean t-shirt which lands softly over Tony's head. The genius makes a quick examination of it and realizes it's Steve's. He puts it on without protest.

"This is me telling you I'll kick both your asses if you two fuck this up again. I  **mean**  it, Stark. The man standing in the middle of my living room a week ago? I barely recognised him. Fucks sake he was doing the whole ugly crying thing - and I've seen him cry before. This was horrible. I would have tossed him out if he hadn't started crying like a little girl on my couch. If that wasn't scary enough, finding out  _you_  were the cause of it? That was something else entirely."

Bucky leans against the island and looks Tony dead in the eyes. 

"I know you and I don't really see eye to eye on things, but Stevie's all I've got, Stark. He's an idiot who thinks he's right all the time. But he's loyal to a fault. He's a good egg, the best kind, but he can also be an obnoxious punk who needs someone to anchor him. If you can be that person for him, I wouldn't have to worry about him too much."

"Why does it feel like you're planning on going on the run again?"

Bucky straightens up and puts three pieces of bacon on a plate. He slides it to Tony. "Maybe I am."

"You don't have to. Come home with us. I mean it when I said I can make things right for you."

"I'm not your problem, Stark."

"You're Steve's. So by default that makes you my baggage too."

Bucky snorts. "God you guys got together like, two hours ago and you're already meddling with each other's problems?"

"You're his family, Barnes, like it or not-"

"I  _killed_  - I took yours, Tony. These hands - they did it. You can't pretend that doesn't bother you at all."

Tony considers for a moment. "I'll make you a new one then."

"What?"

"I'll make you a new one. A better one that doesn't need to be lubed up every time you have an itch to scratch." Tony flashes his signature smile, teasing. "Look, I rather we don't go through that conversation again. But the offer stands without an expiration date. I really hope you make the right choice."

Bucky grows silent, taking slow sips of his coffee.

"Stevie used to feel like a third wheel whenever we took the dames out on dates. Guess the tides have changed, huh?" Bucky looks at Tony, finally forming a smile on his face. Only then did Tony realise how green Bucky's eyes were. Almost as beautiful as Steve's.

They both turn at the sound of Steve's awakening. The blond super soldier sits up from the couch and stretches his arms far and wide. His tussled hair, the slight blush on his cheeks was a sight to behold. When he scratches his neck, Tony's attention was brought to the various visible marks that he had left on his new boyfriend. One nipple was quite well ravished. 

Tony hides his face behind the coffee mug.

"Morning," Steve says, voice thick from sleep, to nobody in particular. "Ughh," he groans as he swings his legs off the couch, carefully holding the blanket against his crotch as he makes his way to the toilet. A long train drapes across the living room, following him into the toilet.

"You alright, pal? You're walking funny," Bucky teases, biting into a piece of bacon.

There was a muffled answer, one that Tony couldn't pick up. 

"He told me I can _fuck right off_ ," Bucky tells Tony. 

The genius' eyebrows shoot up. "Word for word?"

"Yup," Bucky confirms. "Think you know by now he's not all that innocent. Don't let that blush fool you, the piece of shit."

Tony smiles as he gulps the last bit of his coffee. It was decently brewed, too. Maybe it's not such a bad idea, inviting Bucky Barnes to come home with them. At least the man makes good coffee.

Before this, Tony had always felt threatened by his presence. From the day Steve told him that Bucky was alive, and that he  _needed_  to find him despite looking like he's taken the worst beating Tony has seen Steve take (even the Chitauri battle didn't leave Steve hospitalised). If that wasn't enough cause of concern, the man decided to show up at the Avengers Tower one evening, unannounced and having beaten JARVIS' security measures, to confess the crimes of the Winter Soldier. 

That, didn't go very well.

From memory.

Tony was sure it was going to be a distant one soon though.

 

 

 _December 16th, 1991._

_I know that date_

_It wasn't an accident. It was the Asset. It was - sigh. It was me._

_Excuse me?_

_I killed your parents, Stark._

_Bucky. We talked about this. You have to stop saying that_

_I remember all of them, Steve. He's out of my head for now. But the memories. I remember all of them. Same hands-_

_Nat, what's he talking about?_

_Get him out of here_

_Tony_

_You heard me. Get him out of my sight. GET HIM OUT OF HERE, STEVE OR I SWEAR TO GOD I'LL BLAST HIS HEAD OFF_

_Tony put that down_

_I'll go_

_GET OUT_

_Tony put. That. Away. Bucky, wait._

_Why the hell did you bring him to me, Cap?_

_Tony_

_Tony, please put the gauntlet away. Steve I think it's better if you take Sergeant Barnes over to your floor. We can talk about this again later_

_There is nothing TO DISCUSS, BRUCE. I want him out of there. Now. JARVIS!_

_Tony you're not giving him a chance_

Наталья, остановись.  _I'm not_ _asking_ _for a chance_

 _THEN WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT FROM ME?_   _Oh you know what? I don't actually care. Leave in the next five seconds or I'll make you_

_Tony. Calm down, man. You're making yourself look bad_

_I'm calm. I'm fucking calm, Clint. Don't I not look calm to you? I'm fucking negotiating right now._

_You're hysterical, Tony and you need to take the_   _gauntlet off_

_You. You must be thrilled that your old boyfriend is back. And he's a super soldier too! What a pair, huh?_

_Tony. You need to stop this. Power down the suit_

_Or what, Steve? Come on, Barnes. Let's go a few rounds. He's out of your head, huh? Wanna test that?_

_TONY THAT'S ENOUGH_

_Bruce-_

_This is not something he asked to be done to him, Tony! I_ **_know_ ** _you can see that. You saw the good in me, despite knowing that the Hulk is living inside of me, despite not knowing much of me at all. We're all here because you see the good in all of us and you brought us together._

 _We're not saying you don't have the right to be upset. We're all in shock right now and I can only imagine what you're feeling. B_ _ut Tony? Can you put your suit away?_

_Please?_

_.......fine. Only because you asked nicely, Brucie bear._

_Thank you. Guys, can we give him a minute?_ _Steve?_

_Come on Cap_

_Let's give him some space_

 

 _Tony?_

_Come on Steve._

 

_Do you want me to go?_

 

 

 

 

_Tony?_

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Saaaaay, Stark?"

Tony blinks. He zones out of his head and refocuses to see Bucky staring into the living room, his back against Tony. Slow turning around with a horrified expression across his face, Bucky stares at him.

"Did you two, by any chance, fuck on my armchair?"

Tony grins.

 

 

Time does heal wounds.

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> this is the first fic (one shot) i've finished in the past 5-6 months and i'm not entirely happy with it but i know i have to start somewhere if i ever want to get back in the groove. it's been a struggle but i hope you like it though. do leave me some love if you do! comments and kudos will really help <3
> 
>  
> 
> title: james arthur - naked


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